Culture and Conflict

According to recent research one out of every four Americans are of Hispanic origins or a person of color (Williams, 1994). he variety of cultures in the country is anticipated to gro! !ith Hispanics and people of color representing over half of the population "y the #1st century (Williams, 1994). $ur culture provides us !ith information stating !hat is considered normal, appropriate and e%pected (&e'aron, #(()). When !e encounter others !ho do not follo! our norms or meet our e%pectations, it is li*ely that our cultural e%pectations differ (&e'aron, #(()). Conflict is e%pected !hen people from different cultures interact due to differences in norms and values "et!een cultures. We act in !ays that align !ith our o!n personal values. Ho!ever !e are li*ely to interact !ith another party !ho has different values and interprets our "ehavior "ased on their "eliefs. his is li*ely to lead to misunderstanding, !hich in turn is li*ely to lead to a conflict (Williams, 1994). With the Anglo culture as the mainstream of society !e tend to "elieve that our norms are the +ultimate norm, and fail to ac*no!ledge that our culture is one of many that co-e%ist in the .nited /tates (Williams, 1994). We tend to thin* of the so-called +0elting 1ot,, or the concept that is said to have never "ecome a reality in society (Williams, 1994). 0any cultures currently present in society !ish to maintain their traditions and "eliefs instead of "lending in !ith the mainstream norms (Williams, 1994). With numerous cultures present and an increasingly dominant diverse !or*force, conflict is inevita"le. Within the !or*force !e e%pect people to !or* together as a team. With a diverse !or*force it is more common that people of different races and nationalities !ill !or* together on a regular "asis (Haimo!it2, #(14). When co-!or*ers from different cultures engage in conflict !ith one another, their a"ility to thin* creatively is decreased (Halmo!it2, #(14). 3nterestingly it !as found that the people engaged in the actual conflict are less li*ely to point to cultural disharmony as the sole source of the conflict !hen compared to an outsider o"serving the conflict (Halmo!it2, #(14). According to Williams (1994) there are three !ays !e are a"le to resolve conflict that arises due to culture !ithin an organi2ation. 4irst !e can pro"e for the cultural dimension (Williams, 1994). his means that !e should ac*no!ledge that the conflict does contain a cultural component. 'oth parties must also "e !illing to ac*no!ledge and resolve the cultural component of the issue. $nce this has occurred "oth parties are a"le to discuss !hat !as said or done that they found offensive. 'y communicating !ith one another they are a"le to hear !hat the other party found offensive and understand their perceptions (Williams, 1994). hrough conversation the parties are a"le to hear ho! the situation !ould "e handled in the culture of the opponent. hey are then a"le to esta"lish a conflict solution !ith one another that hopefully is a"le to meet "oth party5s e%pectations and goals. Cross-cultural conflict can also "e resolved "y learning a"out other cultures.

6no!ledge a"out other cultures can "e found in a variety of !ays. 7our employer may provide training programs, you may find some general reading, communicate !ith people from different cultures, or learn from your past e%periences. Williams (1994) states that it is important to +develop a cultural a!areness "y ac8uiring a "road *no!ledge of values and "eliefs of other cultures, rather than loo*ing at them through the prism of cultural stereotypes., he final !ay that Williams (1994) suggests to resolve conflict !ithin an organi2ation is to alter the organi2ational practices and procedures. Williams (1994) states that organi2ational structure is often organi2ed to reflect the norms of one culture. 'y changing the structure of the organi2ation the system "ecomes more sensitive to cultural norms of other cultures (Williams, 1994).